Such protectors form parts of conventional protective clothing such as trousers, jackets and overalls of leather or a synthetic material; they are normally located in corresponding pockets associated with the parts of the body to be protected or are connected to the protective clothing in the desired position either separably, for example by means of a Velcro burr fastener, or permanently by adhesion.
In case of a fall the protectors absorb the energy of the shock or impact with the impact surfaces and corners, which are generally hard, and protect the parts of the body that they cover. However, for effective body protection a compromise is needed in practice between on the one hand sufficient flexibility not to restrict the driver's freedom of movement too much and the necessary adaptation to the contours of the body, and on the other hand adequate absorption of the impact energy, which in view of the forces that come to act in the case of a fall requires a high degree of compressive strength.
There have been a series of proposals aimed at solving the problem of meeting these conflicting requirements. Thus for example German utility model specification 84 26 849 proposes a link-conveyor-like spine protector made up of individual plates of a deformation-resistant material such as light metal or steel arranged between an abrasion-resistant fabric layer and a leather layer. To ensure the closest possible fit to the body the plates are bent to the shape of the body, but are themselves resistant to bending.
The manufacture of a protector of this kind is extraordinarily troublesome and expensive, since it is difficult to bring the individual preshaped plates closely together between the individual covering layers. In addition there is a limit to the maximum curvature of the protector from the point of view of adequate protection in the case of accident, quite apart from the fact that the protector can only be curved along its length; it is therefore only suitable for use as a back or spine protector.
In another protector, likewise made up of cushioning elements hinged together, that is known from German Offenlegungsschrift 34 01 111, a generally T-shaped curved cushioning element overlaps the upper part of the spinal region and the shoulder part of the rider like a claw. This T-shaped part is however made in one piece and is substantially inflexible, so that it forms a rigid shell embracing the shoulder and neck region of the wearer.
To give the greatest possible adaptability, German utility model specification 91 02 039 proposes an accident protector of an impact-absorbing synthetic foamed plastic that is made after the manner of a bar of chocolate but with its wedge-shaped grooves filled up with an elastic cold-formable plastic foam material. In this way the protector can be bent substantially semi-cylindrically at least along its grooves. This known protector does not however allow of bending into the shape of a dome, as is necessary for example for an elbow or knee protector with a correspondingly small radius.